Memories
by SillyRabbit0xo
Summary: My first ZoNa fic! Used the 100 Theme Challenge as inspiration. Nami re-discovers one of her happy childhood memories. No romance, just some fun interaction!


Disclaimer: Dangnabbit, I don't own One Piece. I wish.

 _Well, here goes. My first ZoroxNami fic. No actual romance in this story, sorry, just some fun interaction ;) Reviews are very much appreciated, I would like to know what you guys think and since English is not my native language it would be good to know if there are any spelling errors. Cheers!_

(Zoro x Nami 100 Theme Challenge) **#11 Memories**

The Thousand Sunny slowly bobbed on the water, as it lay anchor close to where she was sitting on the dock, while dipping her feet in the water and looking on as the sun was about to hit the horizon. Feeling rather than hearing someone approach, a hint of a smile appeared on her lips.

"You're late." "Not my fault. The head honcho of your fanclub tried to wring information from me as to your whereabouts." "I take it you didn't tell him anything?" "Hell no, it's too much of a hoot to watch him run around town like a headless chicken." "You're a cruel man." "Tch. Like you aren't."

"What? I'm not!" Her companion plopped down next to her and looked at her with raised eyebrows. Nami placed a hand on her chest, pretending to be offended. "I'm not a man!" They both snickered, but after only a few seconds, Nami's smile faded and she looked at the man sitting next to her.

"Thank you, Zoro. I…" "No need to thank me." He interrupted. "This is what we do, right?"

That was the truth. Both she and the swordsman allowed themselves one day a year to mourn the person they lost and wallow in self-pity and booze. Because neither was very fond of talking about emotions, they had come to this silent agreement. The one doing the wallowing hid from the crew the entire day, while the other safeguarded their location. And made sure there was enough alcohol within reach.

Luckily for Nami, the previous day they had dropped anchor at a small island with just one town. The inhabitants seemed quite happy with the distraction that the pirate crew provided to their otherwise uneventful daily routines and decided to go all out and have a feast that lasted till early morning. Careful not to step on anyone's head, leg or otherwise protruding limbs, the young woman made her way to the other side of the island, where she hoped she would not be bothered for the duration of the day.

She had planned on writing into the ship's logbook, which had been a bit neglected lately. But her thoughts kept drifting and she decided to throw in the towel. Instead, she had given into a feeling she couldn't remember having since Belle-mère's death. After she dug her bare feet into the soft sand, she scooped up some to make a small pile. Soon enough, her ankles and calves were covered as well and Nami chuckled softly as more of her memories resurfaced.

Nojiko, Belle-mère and herself at the beach, with both girls' legs getting covered in sand and seashells. "Belle-mère-san, Belle-mère-san! I want a mermaid-tail!" "Nojiko! She was making me a boat first! You have to wait your turn!" Belle-mère laughed as her girls were squabbling but couldn't get into an actual fight, because that would mean they would have to get out of their sand cocoons.

Of course, as soon as their stepmother was finished with her creations, the children had reached the limit of their attention span and jumped out to run into the ocean.

Making sure she couldn't see him, Zoro watched curiously as Nami kept piling sand onto her legs until she was covered up to her waistline. She was so preoccupied by her activity, he could've sat down right next to her and she still wouldn't notice him. But he had no plans of disturbing her. For one, he would run the risk of getting hit upside the head if he did and second, the look of bliss on her face induced a warmness in him he couldn't quite place. And it made him curious. He looked on while she patted and smoothed the mass of sand. Then, with delicate fingers, a pattern was made onto the large shape that surrounded the redhead. Entranced by those same fingers, Zoro swallowed hard as he imagined them drawing the same lines onto his skin. Seemingly done, Nami clapped her hands together to get rid of most of the grains on her hands and the sound jerked him from his trance.

'What the hell is wrong with you? Get a grip already!' Zoro mentally scolded himself for losing focus of his surroundings and moved to leave his nakama to her endeavors. Glancing back one last time, he could see that she had made some sort of… boat? Before he could take a better look, Nami had placed her hands on the ground at her sides and pushed herself out of the sand, completely destroying the sculpture in the process. Then, she sat back and looked at the damage she had caused. A grin had spread on her face, which turned into chuckling and in no time, the navigator had to lean back on her elbows to prevent herself from falling over with laughter.

That took the swordsman by surprise. Of course he'd heard her laugh before, but he realized it had been a long time since the sound had been this genuine. The thing he hádn't realized, was that his feet unconsciously decided to move out of his hiding place from behind the trees that surrounded the small beach and he was now in plain view. That also happened to be the moment Nami turned her head around. "Zoro? What are you doing over there?" She asked, still holding her stomach after her fit of mirth.

His brain felt like overheating, trying to come up with a reason for him being there. Watching her. Then, he remembered he really had been looking for her and regained some composure. "Ah, I ehhm… came to warn you. The others mentioned that they wanted to have a barbeque at the south beach of the island."

Nami raised an eyebrow. "Soooo…. I should be safe here."

Looking around him, Zoro frowned. "What are you talking about, this is the south beach, isn't it? I followed the road signs." Laughing at her nakama's non-existent sense of direction, Nami shook her head. "We're at the east part of the island, you dork. But you do get points for actually finding me."

The green-head scowled, already starting to forget why he even bothered to warn her. Just when he moved to head back in the direction he believed he came from to join the rest of the crew, he felt a tug on his wrist. Zoro was surprised at the speed at which she had gotten up and crossed the sand to reach him. He turned to watch from the woman's hand to her face, wondering what she was up to, only to find her smiling at him.

"What, Nami?" He asked, his senses going on high alert as she lowered her grip from his wrist to his hand. Her smile turned into a big grin, as she turned up his palm and shoved something that felt like paper in his hand. He looked down and saw that she had given him a small sum of Beri. "So you can buy me some good sake for once, considering you're always broke."

Scoffing, he stuffed the money into his pocket. "Yeah, and who's fault is that, always raising my so-called debt for no reason?" "Mine." Nami answered. Beaming, she turned and leasurely started strolling back to the beach, while ignoring the daggers being sent at her back. "Oi! Make sure you're back at the ship before sunset, if you want some of that sake!"

It was some time later that Nami was sitting on the docks, dipping her feet in the water.

"You're late."


End file.
